The Great Recession caused significant hardship for many U.S. families. Safety net programs—some of which were expanded during the recession and its recovery—mitigated some of the worst effects, but were not available to all households and were insufficient to compensate for the depth of the downturn. What can policymakers learn from the adequacy of the response?

Low pay for teachers has received significant national attention, but having a diverse teaching workforce is also critical for improving student outcomes. A large but often ignored problem in America’s education system is the lack of diverse representation among teachers. There are very few male teachers of color in the classroom, and the turnover rate for ones that exist is disproportionately high. Retaining such teachers is a critical element in efforts to narrow the achievement gap and improve student outcomes.

People who have been arrested, convicted of a crime, or incarcerated face many barriers to employment. While much of the difficulty in finding employment is due to institutional exclusion, a UC Berkeley researcher has attributed some of the problem to ineffective job search methods. What can policymakers do to ensure that people who have interacted with the carceral system can find employment?

Recovery from the Great Recession has been slow and extremely prolonged. It was tempting to conclude, at various points, that we had recovered as much as we were going to. Even after the official unemployment rate receded, other indicators of recovery remained much more mixed—the share of people employed remained well below pre-recession levels; wages were stagnant; and inequality continued to grow. Absent clear evidence of a full recovery, including healthy wage growth, policy efforts should emphasize ensuring that the benefits of growth are broadly shared.

To build support for a cause, activists frame issues in ways they think will resonate with the public. UC Berkeley researchers find that one of the primary tactics for activists—using a civil rights framework to frame an issue—can actually decrease public support. Particularly in the case of immigrant rights and legalization, activists should reevaluate their strategies in order to successfully persuade the public to adopt change.

The Great Recession devastated local labor markets and the national economy. Ten years later, Berkeley researchers are finding many of the same red flags blamed for the crisis: banks making subprime loans and trading risky securities. Congress just voted to scale back many Dodd-Frank provisions. Does another recession lie around the corner?

Long COVID disproportionately affects premenopausal women, but relatively few studies have examined Long COVID's impact on female reproductive health. We conduct a review of the literature documenting the female reproductive health impacts of Long COVID which may include disruptions to the menstrual cycle, gonadal function, ovarian sufficiency, menopause, and fertility, as well as symptom exacerbation around menstruation. Given limited research, we also review the reproductive health impacts of overlapping and associated illnesses including myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), connective tissue disorders like Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), and endometriosis, as these illnesses may help to elucidate reproductive health conditions in Long COVID. These associated illnesses, whose patients are 70%-80% women, have increased rates of dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, oligomenorrhea, dyspareunia, endometriosis, infertility, vulvodynia, intermenstrual bleeding, ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids and bleeding, pelvic congestion syndrome, gynecological surgeries, and adverse pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia, maternal mortality, and premature birth. Additionally, in Long COVID and associated illnesses, symptoms can be impacted by the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause. We propose priorities for future research and reproductive healthcare in Long COVID based on a review of the literature. These include screening Long COVID patients for comorbid and associated conditions; studying the impacts of the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause on symptoms and illness progression; uncovering the role of sex differences and sex hormones in Long COVID and associated illnesses; and addressing historical research and healthcare inequities that have contributed to detrimental knowledge gaps for this patient population.

BACKGROUND: Prior case series suggest that a 5-day course of oral Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir/ritonavir) benefits some people with Long COVID, within and/or outside of the context of an acute reinfection. To the best of our knowledge, there have been no prior case series of people with Long COVID who have attempted longer courses of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir. METHODS: We documented a case series of 13 individuals with Long COVID who initiated extended courses (>5 days; range: 7.5-30 days) of oral nirmatrelvir/ritonavir outside (n=11) of and within (n=2) the context of an acute SARS-CoV-2 infection. Participants reported on symptoms and health experiences before, during, and after their use of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir. RESULTS: Among those who took a long course of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir outside of the context of an acute infection, some experienced a meaningful reduction in symptoms, although not all benefits persisted; others experienced no effect on symptoms. One participant reported intense stomach pain that precluded her from continuing her course. Among the two participants who took a long course of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir within the context of an acute reinfection, both eventually returned to their pre-re-infection baseline. DISCUSSION: Long courses of nirmatrelvir/ritonavir may have meaningful benefits for some people with Long COVID but not others. We encourage researchers to study who, how, and why nirmatrelvir/ritonavir benefits some and what course length is most effective, with the goal of informing clinical recommendations for using nirmatrelvir/ritonavir and/or other antivirals as a potential treatment for Long COVID.

Long COVID is a chronic and often disabling illness with long-term consequences. Although progress has been made in the clinical characterization of long COVID, no approved treatments exist and disconnects between patients and researchers threaten to hinder future progress. Incorporating patients as active collaborators in long COVID research can bridge the gap and accelerate progress toward treatments and cures.